When running for sport, humans generally split into three categories: endurance over relatively long distances, speed over relatively short distances, and personal pleasure without concern for distance or speed. It is with the middle category of runners that the present invention is particularly concerned, a category of persons which is hereinafter sometimes termed "speed runners".
Many techniques are used by speed runners and their coaches for increasing running speed. Typically each technique which has utility is capable of producing a modest increase in speed, whereupon another plateau is reached. For instance, a speed runner who runs alone and without a timer usually is able to run the same course faster in competition with at least one other runner or with the aid of a timer. Once a plateau is reached some additional gain may still be made by modifying these aids, for instance by switching to a faster running partner or giving the runner altered time cues. Frequency, duration and content of practice and competition, diet, life style modification, running surface, climate and weather, shoes, clothing and coach/runner interfacing all may contribute to running speed improvement.
Beyond these known "carrot"-type techniques for increasing running speed are known "stick"-type techniques for inducing further improvement in a more direct manner. Principal among these, are the known techniques of fastening one end of a rope to a motor vehicle such as a car or motorcycle and the other end to the runner, and operating the motor vehicle over the selected course at a speed which is somewhat faster than the runner can run unaided. Provided the runner is not pulled too much faster than he or she can run, the result may be to induce a rather permanent increase in the runner's speed capability, due to the runner's forced adoption and then assimilation of changed body motion and techniques. however, these known techniques for improvement by direct application of pulling force can be dangerous to carry-out; the attention of the motor vehicle driver is divided between the course and the runner. As a result, the runner may all too easily become accidentally injured. Thus some speed runners who have exhausted or reached plateaus from using the indirect techniques for increasing their running speed, are prevented by their own or someone else's perception of undue risk from using known techniques for direct application of pulling force for further increasing their running speed. Yet the temptation to flirt with danger for the possible reward from using the known techniques never goes completely away.